Letter from Chen May Yee

Hi Joanna,

Stumbled on your blog and it was very fun to read about what various people have been up to. Okay, I admit I was googling myself but only to check if the crazy story I wrote about Malaysia's plan to create cyclones to scrub away the 1997 haze wasn't still showing up first (It still is, sadly.)

Anyway, a quick update: I've been in Minneapolis for almost four years. My husband's family is from here. I write and edit healthcare news at the local rag (http://www.startribune.com/) which is a great gig, for the most part.

I've got two girls - Zoe, 4, and Maya, 2, and my husband Chris is home with them.The community is vibrant and there are wonderful parks and children's museums so the kids have fun. But it's too cold most of the year for tropical girls like me. I have to say my outlook on living here has brightened considerably since Peninsula, a Malaysian restaurant opened by a lady from Ipoh, opened about a year ago. Amazing nyonya laksa.

Here's a piccy of the girls.

How far have we spread?

When this blog was started five months ago, I was curious to find out how widely BBGSians have spread their wings around the world. And you dear readers have certainly delivered! At last count, this blog has received over 400 visits from 20 countries. The most popular countries are :

1. Malaysia (that's obvious!)
2. Singapore (apples have not fallen far from the tree)
3. United Kingdom (not surprising given our Anglophile upbringing)
4. United States (a popular education destination, no doubt)
5. Australia (another traditional colonial outpost)
6. Thailand (a little surprising but I'd love to know your story!)
7. New Zealand (students perhaps?)
8. Hong Kong (BBGSians at work or play?)
9. South Africa ( I know for a fact that Liew Siew Ling is logging in from Free State)
10. Canada (yet more students?)

I'd like to say a big THANK YOU to all of you for logging in. Do continue to spread the word to more BBGSians so that we can continue keeping the school spirit alive.

Cheers!

BBGS Class of 1986's 20th Year Reunion

Update from Moonlake Lee (Class of 1986, 5Sc5 - This is Moon's first attempt at blogging!)

The BBGS Class of 1986 celebrated its 20th year reunion last year....(this posting is a little late, but better late than never, right?)

A group of 48 ladies met up at the KL Hilton on Saturday, August 5, 2006 for high tea—and what a time it was! Though many of us were based in the KL/PJ area, some came from Perak, Sarawak, Singapore, Japan and England, to attend the event. We dominated the area set apart for us, and had great fun in catching up with each other and taking countless photos. Of course, there was the odd embarrassment of either not recognizing an old friend, mistaking her for someone else….or worse still, forgetting her name !

Without realizing it, 20 years have quickly slipped by—it didn’t seem too long ago when we were all at BBGS, dressed in our white blouses and blue pinafores, with the prospect of the SPM examinations always at the back of our minds. Despite this, we found time to develop friendships, many of which have lasted decades—and hopefully, for decades to come…

We’ve all gone on different paths in life— schools, careers, spouses, kids, other countries. One thing remains that unites us all, however, and that is our identity as BBGS girls, and the memories of our beloved school on Jalan Bukit Bintang.

Sadly, the physical building is no longer there but nothing will ever take away the memories, the friendships and the lessons on life values that we learned when we were all at BBGS.

Many thanks to Yong Pui Kim, June Koh Pek Yin, Lim Szu Ling, Selina Tan, and Tho Mei Poh for helping to moot the idea of a 20th year Class of 1986 reunion, and working hard along the way to drum up support for the event.

We came up with a Class of 1986 booklet to commemorate the event, and also to provide an opportunity for those who came to the event, and for those who were unable to make it, to keep in touch with each other. It’s also fun to see the “Then” and “Now” photos to see how much we have all changed….or how we still look the same!

Looking forward to our next event….the 25th year reunion!

Nisi Dominus Frustra—Without God, All Things are in Vain.

Loo Poi Yoke remembers...

5 Sc 2 (1987) reunion: Michelle, Lynett, Yee Git, Rena and Poi Yoke

Jackie Loo Poi Yoke is mother to 2 boys, and she currently runs a wellness business with her husband. She shares her recent BBGS reunion photo and some memories with us:

• I remember the sardine toasties we had to make every foodsale
• On Monday it was complusory to speak English, while Wednesday was Bahasa day
• I remember Mrs Maniam lying on the school chairs at the back of the class while we underlined the whole Sejarah book
• I remember washing toilets and floral arrangements
• I certainly remember having to sing the Donkey Hee-haw song, mowing meadow song and the Meatball + spaghetti song during assembly
• I remember the strict prefects who made us pick rubbish and wrote our names down if we arrived late
• I remember how we have to keep left everytime we go up or down the stairs
• The permission slips for everything from A-Z, the spot checks, the black and white ribbons on the hair,
• The sick bed
• The BBGS school bus

That's all I remember!

Our dear Mrs Abraham

Oh what a wonderful day! I was thrilled to meet up with Mrs Abraham for lunch. We haven't seen each other in over a decade, and she looks as bright and cheerful as ever. She sends her regards to all the BBGS girls who are reading this blog.

Mrs Laura Abraham enriched the lives of many generations of BBGSians with her passion, creativity and infectious laughter. We had such good fun in her English class: writing limericks, coining advertisments and singing the Animal Farm anthem to the tune of 'La Cucaracha'. When I credited Mrs Abraham for the richness of her lessons, she humbly replied, "We just took all the values learnt from Miss Cooke, and passed them on to you girls".

Mrs Abraham retired from BBGS in 1994, after serving our alma mater for 22 years. She's currently busy supervising the renovation of her home. Her children, Thomas and Anne-Marie, are successful professionals with Big Four firms.

Remember how Mrs Abraham used to lead the sing-alongs during school assembly? One of her recent projects has been to compile all these BBGS favourites into a songbook. It's been a labour of love, and I suggested that it should be published. How many of you think it's a good idea and would like to own this unique memorabilia? Drop us a comment and let us know.